Wednesday, 1 May 2013

I was introduced to Jenny Overend when I was in need of a
model for a magazine photoshoot andagreed it would be mutually beneficial to work together again. Jenny had
only did a few shoots before so was relatively a novice, however the camera
loved her and she took direction very well. As a consequence, I gave myself a project: I arranged for 3
photoshoots on 3 consecutive days all with a different hair/makeup clothes, location and photographer. As Jenny is under 16 ,
her lovely mother Annie was attendant at each session. I'm not sure why I didn't arrange hair and makeup assistants for either shoot-probably because I wanted to really push myself I suppose...

As well as creating the hair and makeup for the shoots I
also styled them with my own outfits and accessories as I hang onto clothes
from way back (excluding look 1). There wasn’t a great deal of time to plan my
looks but I was very pleased with how they evolved and ultimately turned out and I think that all 3 photographers did a great job and I couldn't possibly choose a favourite:they are all unique in their own way.

Photographer:Oliver Schneider

Shoot 1 took place at Contrast Studiosin Glasgow with fantastic photographerOliver Schneider. I wanted to create a natural beauty
look with minimal makeup with hair left flowing with plaiting round front of
head on some and pulled back into a ponytail in others.I used MAC Mineralized liquid foundation and Strobe cream and other illuminating products to enhance Jenny's great skin.

Lighting was mainly natural light and in some shots artificial lighting . The shoot was pulled off
beautifully by Oliver who I have had the pleasure of working with for the past
few years now (our collaborative work has been published on a couple of
occasions). Oliver is primarily a fashion and wedding photographer and very
creative.Jenny brought her own outfits apart from one that I brought along.

Photographer:Ronny Cathro

I asked photographer Ronny Cathro to shoot Look 2 which
originally was to be an outdoors shoot but due to bad weather washastily done indoors at the Queens Hotel,
Dundee. Ronny has years of experience as a journalistic photographer with DC
Thomsons and has also photographed many celebrities and is a great wedding and
family portraiture photographer.

I have had alove for
Biba and photographer Sarah Moon since a small girl and was given a Biba poster
from a relative: the poster is long gone but I was able to find the exact same
one to replace it on ebay.

In the gallery on this site is the firsthomage to Biba I did and I had been wanting
to create another for a while but just didn't have the time. The look is not a true copy of the Biba looks but my
interpretation as I would have found it pretty boring to replicate exactly.

I created a look for Jenny using Kryolan and MAC cosmetics
and curled her straight hair so it was almost frizzy. The hair was finished by
using a scarf that matched one of the colours used in her eye makeup. I
‘erased’ her eyebrows with Glue and makeup and created new thin brows. The dress
had wing-like sleeves and with the addition of a pair of my vintage black suede platform clogs Jenny was my walking Biba creation.

The lighting was atmospheric and complemented my makeup
well. I particularly love the shot taken of Jenny reflected in my makeup mirror
as she looks almost Pierrot-like.

Photographer:Ronny Cathro

For the final session I wanted to create 2 Lana del Ray
style looks in one session. I was initially just going to do the one with
the backcombed hair but asI don’t like
to make life easy on myself I decided to throw in another look with a floral
hairpiece that she has been frequently photographed with. Small problem – I had
no available head piece so I pulled apart the rose and spider bracelet I
created for a Sugar Skull shoot I had done last year with Oliver and model SulaPowell. I attached the roses to a frame and pinned to the hair in about 10 mins
before photographer Julie Christie arrived. Julie is primarily a wonderful
family portraiture and boudoir photographer but I actually met her at a
wedding- click here to view Julie’s work.

Add caption

The session took place in my home and, making an appearance,
my oft-used Chesterfield couch.

Photographer:Julie Christie

I lied when I said there was 3 looks there is actually 2
others to come- one for ‘Invite’ magazine S/S 13 that is published in May (I am
the hair/makeup artist and feature writer since the first edition) and one look
to happen soon that will be a nod to the looks of the forthcoming ‘ Great Gatsby’ film.

I hope you enjoy them as much as I enjoyed creating them and
as for Jenny I predict great things in the future…